Build Journey
I Built a Calm Mode Into My Website Because Some Brains Need One
September 27: the design system and calm mode.
The Ford family · Josh, dad and builder of FamilyOrganization.app, writing up his build journey
Published Updated 1 min read
On September 27 I set up the website's design system and added calm mode. The colours, fonts and spacing come from the design plan. The fonts are self-hosted, and the body font has tabular digits so clocks don't jitter.
Calm mode is one switch in the header and footer that stops all autonomous motion. It follows the device's reduced-motion setting by default, and it's applied before the page paints so nothing flashes. I dropped smooth scrolling, because scroll hijacking disorients many neurodivergent readers. Here's why this matters for ADHD families.
Built on September 27, 2026 (commit 23b1b39). Written up on October 2, 2026 from my commit history.